Button



- y 1944- c. R. MORRIS 7 5 73 BUTTON Filed Jan. 29, 1942 4- my ENTOR. \Claremoni Robert Morris ATTORNEY.

Patented July '4,

arsenal BUTTON I Claremont Robert Morris, New-milk. N. r. Application January as, 1942, Serial No. 428,658

Claims.

This-invention relates to buttons, and particularly buttons of the character used on garments to engage in a button-hole.

Ordinary button construction presents certain diillculties of replacement to meet temporary reqiiirements, yet in most instances and certainly with heavy garments such as fur coats, sport and winter coats, any temporary attachment must be so secure that likelihood of loss of the button is overcome. It is often desired to change buttons of a garment, for instancejt'o have red buttons to match some other article, such as shoes,

purse, hat and so forth, and perhaps the same day to wear the same garment'wlth another color or style of button to match someother article.-

To have to resort to cutting the buttons oil and sewing othersin place is utterly impractical.

The present invention accordingly has for an object the practical solution of the problem of button exchange on garments.

A further object of the invention is to enable button exchange to be eilected without injury to thegarmena a A still further object of theinvention is to permm button exchange to be effected easily-without tools, and in a very short space of time.

Again, an obiectoi the invention is to enable a garment to be cleaned without injury to the button.

Other and further objects of the invention will appear to those skilled in the art as the description progresses, both by direct statement thereof and by ingilication from the context.

g for protectingsaid means as when the garment suitable design and configuration. For mounting this body portion upon a garment, a hollow shank member H is provided, that member being screwthreaded next its outer end and engageable with screw-threads provided in a prepared opening or socket I2 in the button body portion. The shank member-is secured to the garment in suitable manner, different accomplishment thereoi being shown in the several modifications. An outstanding feature of the present invention is provision of a button the appearance whereof may be changed, such changeability being eflectuated in the figures now being described by the removal of the button body portion from its shank and replacement of a diiIerent body portion on the shank to meet the desires of the user. It thus will be seen that the shank portion can be fixed permanently to a garment and'when change'oi button is desired, the, body member is readily unscrewed and a new one screwed back into place, an operation which requires no particular time or effort and which does no damage to the garment. Thus the user can freely change from a plain type of button to a fancy or ornamented one or from a somber one as for street wear to another that is studded or otherwise intended for Referring to the accompanying drawing in.

which like numerals of reference indicate similar parts throughout the several views;

Figure 1 is a diametric-axial sectional view of a button involving the present invention, showing the same attachedto a fragmentary sectional showing of a garment. V

Figure 2 is a face view of a washer-like plate or member juxtaposed in use against the garment and forming part of the attaching means.

Figure 3 is an end view of the hollow portion of the attaching means.

Figure 4 is a sectional view similar to Fig. l, and showing a modified construction.

Figure 5 is a face view of the modified construction of member 'of the showing of Fig. 4. which is juxtaposed in use against the garment. Figure 6 is another sectional view similar to Fig. 1, and showing a further modified construcshank tion: and Figure 7 is a sectional view 01' a protector for" evening wear, or may change from a button of one color to match accessories to buttons of another color to match other accessories, all without any detrimental effects upon the garment.

The invention is not confined to replacement of the entire body portion, it being contemplated that the character of button can be altered by replacement of some portion of the, body member. This ieatur'e is exemplied in Figure 4 as using the same hollow shank member II as previously described and screwing thereon a body member Ila having a character-changing member I! which in this instance is of less diameter than the body member and internally threaded so as to be removably screwed upon a' central hub-like projection H correspondingly threaded. By combination of various configurations, colors, or other distinctive features of body member and character-changing member, the owner of the garment has extensive choice of button structure and appearance.

' Again it may be pointed out that the particular construction and assembly of the character- 2 changing member is not confined to the detailed construction just described, but may be otherwisemonstructed and applied, Figure 6 showing one of the many possible variations. There is shown a hollow shank member llb threaded at its outer end as before, but providing behind the threaded part a disc I! concentric with and nor-' constitute means for retention of a characterchanging means lib such as fabric extended I across the front face of the button and across that part of the rear face which contains said groove. Screwing the body member home tightens the rim into the groove and both stretches the fabric across the face of the button and grips the fabric firmly in the groove. Let it be understood however, that reference to fabric as the particular character-changing material is not by way of restriction, but illustrative o The construction is one illustrative of ready substitution and use of material covering the entire front face of the button.

Attachment of the shank member to the garand is there coiled into a flat spiral or 6-formatlon 20a adapted to be secured to the garment. As shown, the G-formation constitutes for stitching purposes an eyelet that is sewn by threads a in place. By preference the wire forming the eyelet is pointed, enabling the device to be attached to a garment by piercing the goods, screwing the spiral therethrough so as to situate the goods between the eyelet and the shank member should the user so desire.

Again, attachment maybe obtained by providing a stem of the character shown in Iflgure 6 wherein the protruding end of the stem is sharpened and bent, and on application through the goods of the garment while in the shape shown situates the L-end 20b to the rear of the goods, after which the person applying the button may bend'the said end forwardly and back into the goods thereby stapling or pinning thestem in place.

I Forpurposes of protecting the shank member when the garments using the buttons of this invention are sent to the cleaner and yet permit ment may be accomplished in one of several ways, a diiferent modification being shown with each different showing of button body member, but it is to be understood the invention is not confined necessarily to use of the particular attaching means with the particular shank or button members. The particular showing chosen to apply in the drawing in Figures 1 to 3 provides a stem of wire or the like axially of the shank member having an inner end within the shank member provided with a head i8 toward the front of the button. Between the head of the stem and the bottom of the hollow shank member is a spring IS. The stem projects through the bottom of to the garment therebeyond. The rear end of the stem is shown looped into an eyelet 20 which can be forced through the material of the garment where it may be seated in a washer-like plate 2!. Said platens can be seen in Fig. 2, has a slot 22 therein of appropriate size to admit said eyelet to pass therethrough. The rear side of the plate is notched, as at 23 crosswise of the slot'so the eyelet can be turned a quarter turn after being inserted through the slot and seat in the said notch. Then by stitching the plate II the buttons to be removed, I provide a cap 28, appropriately shaped, dimensioned and screw threaded as at 21 to screw onto the threads of the shank of a button and protect the threads of.

the shank and preferably protecting the entire shank from damage.

Obviously other detail changes and modificalions may be made in the construction and those here shown are only some examples illustrative of the invention.

I claim: I

1. A button comprising in combination a shank member, a body member at the forward end of the shank member, a stem protruding from the rear end of said shank member, a protruding portion of said stem being bent in G-formation in a plane normal to the length of the shank.

2. A button comprising a body member the periphery whereof forms the outer contour of the button, and a hollow shank member, said shank member having external screw threads at its forward end and an external shoulder at its rearthe shank member for attachment and eyelet 20 to the garment those parts as well i as the shank member are permanently part of the garment. The spring l9 accommodates application of the stem to garments of different thicknesses and also provides for a degree of give" to the button to take up an initial sudden or severe strain. For assembly or repair purposes, the bottom of the hollow shank member may be provided with a slot 24 (Fig. 3) therein which, like slot 22 of the plate 2|, will pass the eyelet therethrough.

Referring now to the stem structure of Figures 4 and 5, the same is again shown of wire formation, the .forwardhead |8a thereof being a cross-wire or the like so it may be passed through the slot 24 of the shank member .ll during assembly. The rear part of stem protrudes throu h the rear of the shank member ward end adapted to.;engage against a garment to which the button is attached and facing away from the threaded end, said shank providing an intervening portion between said threads and shoulder protruding behind the body member for spacing the body member from the garment to which attached and for passing through a buttonhole of the garment, said body member being socketed and internally threaded in said socket for mounting said body member removably on said shank member, said members having cooperating stops for limiting insertion of the shank member into the body member and maintaining said intervening portion of said exterior to and behind the body member toward the garment, and elongated means protruding behind said shoulder and having a transverse portion for retention by the garment, whereby said button provides a portion secured to the garment, said button also providing a characterchanging portion adapted to be disattached and replaced with respect to the garment-attached portionr 3. A. button comprising a body member the periphery whereof forms the outer contour of the button, and a hollow shank member, said shank member having external screw threads at its forward end and an external shoulder at its rearward end adapted to engage against agarment to which the button is attached and facing away from the threaded end, said shank providing an intervening portion between said threads and shoulder protruding behind the body member for spacing the body member from the garment to which attached and for passing through a buttonhole oi the garment, said body member being socketed and internally, threaded in said socket for mounting said body member removably on said shank member, said members having cooperating stops for limiting insertion of the shank member into the body member and maintaining said intervening portion or said shank exterior to and behind the body member toward the garment, and elongated means protruding behind said shoulder andhaving its protruding end bent into a loop for stitching to and 4. A button in accordance with claim 2 wherein said body portion provides a second screw threaded areaand with the screw-threads of said second area accessible from the outside of the button, and wherein the character-changing portion'is separable from the body portion and removably secured thereon by said last-mentioned screw threads.

for retention by the garment, whereby said button provides a portion secured to the garment and a character-changingportion removable therefrom and replaceable thereon.

5. A button in accordance with claim 3 wherein said body portion provides'a hub on the front thereof, said hub b'eing screw threaded at its periphery in front of the body portion and with the screw threads accessible from the outside of the button, and a character-changing member removabiy applicable over said hub and secured removably by said screw threads on the hub.

' CLAREMONT ROBERT MORRIS. 

